Becoming a potential marrow donor quick, easy: column

On Saturday, I became one of the newest potential bone marrow donors in Wisconsin.

I did so during Be The Match’s afternoon bone marrow registration at Zion Lutheran Church, 2106 N. Peach Ave., which came to Marshfield in support of Livie Northcott, a 2-year-old Marshfield girl who was diagnosed with a rare blood cancer nine months ago.

Having lost a family member to leukemia four years ago, I was intimately aware of how important finding a marrow transplant can be in treating leukemia. My cousin had briefly been in remission after receiving a bone marrow transplant from a donor in Germany, but succumbed to the disease months later, leaving behind a husband and a 10-year-old daughter.

Family members have done what they can to raise awareness — hosting bone marrow registries and creating a charity organization — so when I heard about the registry opportunity Saturday, I knew it was something I needed to do.

The process of becoming a potential donor was relatively quick and simple, taking no longer than brushing my teeth, and required only four cotton swabs to be rubbed on the inside of my cheeks. Filling out my contact information and ancestry was the longest part, and even that only took about five minutes.

My name is now on the National Marrow Donor Program list with about 10.5 million other potential donors.

Only one in about 540 people who join the registry end up being a match for the 12,000 patients who need a transplant in the United States each year, said Kelli VanderWielen, community engagement specialist with Be The Match, which operates the donor program out of Appleton.

“Commitment is crucial when someone joins because they could be called in a couple months, a couple years, and when they’re called, we want them to be ready for the next step of the process because they could be the only match for a patient,” she said.

Livie Northcott didn’t require a bone marrow transplant and is in remission, but her mother said the experience taught them how important events like Saturday’s are.

“The community support has been outstanding, and we want to do all we can to give back and raise awareness,” Trish Northcott said. “She’s currently in remission, and we couldn’t ask for a better gift.”

Getting added to the registry doesn’t require someone to attend an event like Saturday’s. VanderWielen said those who are interested in adding their name to the registry can request a kit to be sent to their homes, which they can complete and mail back.

Logan T. Carlson can be reached at 715-384-3131, ext. 328.

More information:

To learn how to become a potential bone marrow donor, visit www.bethematch.com, or call Kelli VanderWielen at 800-280-4102.